The Hunting of Hillary

February 15, 2020
A deep look at four decades of hating Hillary. Perhaps no woman in American history has been vilified as viciously or for as long as Hillary Clinton. Ever since Newt Gingrich famously called her a "bitch" 40 years ago, she has been publicly accused of everything from running a pedophile ring in the basement of a Washington, D.C., pizzeria to murdering former Deputy White House Counsel Vincent Foster, or at least participating in his murder (it was ruled suicide). She's been accused of being a lesbian, being frigid, attending sex parties with her husband, Bill, and having an affair with Foster; of controlling, with Bill, death squads in Arkansas; of waging a 30-year war on the nation's religious heritages; of being "the antichrist" (Ryan Zinke). She's been at the heart of a number of supposed scandals involving such things as Whitewater, her emails, and Benghazi. Today, even after her presidential bid failed and she left politics three years ago, the attacks continue. Donald Trump alone has issued more than 200 social media attacks on her. Former Newsday journalist D'Antonio, who wrote The Shadow President: The Truth About Mike Pence (2018), among other biographies and histories, explores every one of the accusations, in detail, with the intent of showing why they are all wrong. He vilifies any writer who vilified her, often spending several paragraphs explaining why this or that writer cannot be trusted, either because they have a history of writing erroneous stories, obviously hate Hillary, or are blatant liars. However, while he builds a convincing case that Republicans have treated Hillary with extraordinary unfairness, hatefulness, and cruelty, the book suffers from its one-sided viewpoint. D'Antonio makes Hillary sound almost like a fairy godmother who can do no wrong; there is hardly a word of criticism throughout the text. Still, just like the author's previous books, this one is thoroughly researched, clearly written, and often incisive. Hillary lovers will love it; Hillary haters will hate it.

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Starred review from April 15, 2020
Unprecedented in American history is how journalist and writer D'Antonio (A Consequential President, 2017) describes the four-decade siege against Hillary Rodham Clinton, an all-out effort to demonize a diligent and accomplished woman dedicated to the public good. D'Antonio tracks each phase of this concerted and continuous attack against a woman who refused to comply with the conventional definition of femininity as she pursued her extraordinary legal, social-justice, and political career. Portraying Clinton with all due complexity, D'Antonio chronicles every public ordeal she endured as First Lady of Arkansas and the United States, U.S. senator, secretary of state, and popular-vote-winning presidential candidate in pinpoint detail, then reveals with equal meticulousness the vicious machinations of the Right as their hostile tactics grew ever more diabolical and perversely profitable, their hypocrisy epic. He calls out a veritable army of character assassins, including Newt Gingrich, Roger Ailes, Kenneth Starr, Brett Kavanaugh, Rush Limbaugh, and Donald Trump, contrasting their venomous and ludicrous accusations and outright threats with Clinton's poise, stamina, and dignity under fire. This galvanizing expos� will stand as a key resource in the study of sexism and politics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)

April 15, 2020
Unprecedented in American history is how journalist and writer D'Antonio (A Consequential President, 2017) describes the four-decade siege against Hillary Rodham Clinton, an all-out effort to demonize a diligent and accomplished woman dedicated to the public good. D'Antonio tracks each phase of this concerted and continuous attack against a woman who refused to comply with the conventional definition of femininity as she pursued her extraordinary legal, social-justice, and political career. Portraying Clinton with all due complexity, D'Antonio chronicles every public ordeal she endured as First Lady of Arkansas and the United States, U.S. senator, secretary of state, and popular-vote-winning presidential candidate in pinpoint detail, then reveals with equal meticulousness the vicious machinations of the Right as their hostile tactics grew ever more diabolical and perversely profitable, their hypocrisy epic. He calls out a veritable army of character assassins, including Newt Gingrich, Roger Ailes, Kenneth Starr, Brett Kavanaugh, Rush Limbaugh, and Donald Trump, contrasting their venomous and ludicrous accusations and outright threats with Clinton's poise, stamina, and dignity under fire. This galvanizing expos� will stand as a key resource in the study of sexism and politics.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)